During his presidency at IIHF, Fasel made no secret of his sympathy for Eastern European dictators Vladimir Putin and Alexander Lukashenko. And as it turned out, the involvement of Russia and Belarus in the military invasion of Ukraine, in which Putin’s troops killed civilians, including children, changed nothing.
The IIHF, like many other organizations, has excluded Russia and Belarus from international tournaments. Some foreign hockey players are also trying to leave the local KHL league, where Fasel, on the other hand, is headed.
Swiss dentists will be experts in strategic matters in the Continental League.
This move provoked a strong reaction, among others, in Finland, which is also the host of this year’s World Cup. Local politician and former Prime Minister Alexander Stubb leaned heavily on Fasel.
“He is a disgrace to the global hockey family. If he really works for the KHL, the EU should put him on the sanctions list. Under no circumstances will he be welcome in Finland (at the World Cup) in Finland,” Stubb wrote on Twitter.
Ex president @IIHFHockeyRené Fasel, now allegedly working for @khl_eng. He is a disgrace to the global ice hockey family. If the news is confirmed, the EU will have to put it on the sanctions list. In any case, welcome to the World Championships in Finland in May.
— Alexander Stubb (@alexstubb) March 17, 2022
In the case of the KHL and Russian hockey in general, it is difficult to defend the claim that sport should be separated from politics, since Russian hockey is associated with the Kremlin “umbilical cord” regime on many levels. Ukraine during the game.
In these circumstances, Fasel is heading there, which, among other things, criticizes the exclusion of Russia and Belarus from international hockey.
“Fasel has a wealth of experience and expert views on hockey. In the league, he will be responsible for strategic issues related to the development of the KHL,” explained a league spokesman for the Allhockey.ru server.
As Vice President of Finel IIHF, another Finn Kalervo Kummola has worked with Fasel for a long time, and he also cannot imagine Fasel taking part in the next World Cup as a guest of honour.
Definitely out of the Finland Match. Closed group type.
Rene Fasel’s new work in Russia took Alexander Stubb by surprise – the somber words of Kalervo Kummola: “He seems very deep” https://t.co/8lt5xRrrUg
– Esko Haapaniemi (@EskoHaapaniemi) March 18, 2022
“Something has to happen. I think the IIHF should reconsider this. There is still time to decide how to deal with this. But I don’t think anyone will welcome him here,” Kummola told Ilta-Sanomat.
“That, as a Swiss, he went to the KHL in this state … It was really strange. But before that, he had several times confessed how much he loved Russia. I don’t know what was behind it, it’s hard for me to imagine. But he’s been going in this direction for years, we’re trying to balance it at IIHF,” Kummola told Iltalehti’s server.
